Bulleit at Stitzel-Weller

Bulleit bourbon traces back to 1830s Louisville, Kentucky. The Bulleit recipe was created by Augustus Bulleit, a tavern keeper. Bulleit distilled his bourbon until he vanished mysteriously while transporting his product from Louisville to New Orleans. The recipe was almost lost forever. Today, Thomas Bulleit Jr. distills his ancestor's recipe at the Stitzel-Weller distillery, which originally opened in 1935. The property was reopened to the public in 2014 and is now one of the stops on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

The story of Bulleit whiskey is tied to the stories of Pappy Van Winkle whiskey and the Weller and Stitzel companies. Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle got his start in the whiskey business as a salesman for William Larue Weller. W. L. Weller and his brother Charles opened their distillery in 1849. His son, George Pence, joined the company in 1870. In 1889, George and Weller’s other son, John C., took over the business after their father’s death. Meanwhile, Pappy Van Winkle rose to the position of secretary-treasurer in 1907. At some point, the Weller company quit making alcohol and, in 1912, became a wholesaler for the A. Ph. Stitzel Company instead.

After coming to America in 1859, German brothers Frederick, Phillip, and Jacob Stitzel became interested in the production of alcohol. In 1872, they built their first distillery. A fire destroyed the building in 1883, but it was rebuilt on the same site. The business was reincorporated as the A. Ph. Stitzel Company in 1921 when Phillip’s son Arthur Phillip took over. In 1933, the Stitzel distillery and the Weller wholesale company merged. The new business made it through Prohibition by selling already-distilled whiskey for medicinal purposes. Once Prohibition was repealed, the Weller-Stitzel distillery was given permission to reopen. Opening on Derby Day in 1935, the distillery went on to produce brands such as Pappy Van Winkle, Rebel Yell, and Old Fitzgerald.

Bulleit Distilling Company was founded in 1987 by Thomas Bulleit Jr. Thomas, the great-great-grandson of original distiller Augustus Bulleit, revived an old family recipe to produce to the population. Thomas ran a successful law firm until he dropped it to make bourbon. Today, Bulleit is among the fastest growing whiskeys in America. Until recently, Bulleit bourbon was solely distilled at Stitzel-Weller in Louisville, Kentucky. On March 14th, 2017, Bulleit opened a $115 million distillery located in Shelbyville, Kentucky. The distillery is not open to the public yet, but guests can tour the Bulleit distillery located in Louisville.

The Bulleit recipe dates back to the 1830s. Augustus Bulleit, a local tavern owner in Louisville. Augustus wanted to create a bourbon that was unique in flavor. His final creation was a high-rye whiskey that he made throughout the 1830s until the 1860s. Augustus disappeared one day while transporting his spirits, and his disappearance remains a mystery until this day. This high-rye recipe inspired one of Bulleit's flagship bourbons, a 95% rye bourbon.

The Bulleit flagship products are the original Bulleit Bourbon, Bulleit Rye, and the Bulleit Bourbon 10-Year-Old. Their bourbon is distilled with a higher-than-average rye percentage, meaning each bourbon has a gentle spiciness. They also distill their bourbon in charred American oak barrels, which lends itself to the bourbon's smoky nature. Their bourbon has won multiple awards from San Francisco World Spirits Competition, the Beverage Tasting Institute, and the Spirit Journal.